Everything happens for a reason

Chapter 5--familiar places

"It's the new Soul" Talia mumbled under her breath. Her mom looked over her shoulder at Talia confused at what she had heard, "What did you say?" She asked. "Oh nothing," Talia said looking around the entrance of the apartment. "Don't lie to me, what did you say? I've heard that name before." Her mom demanded stepping closer to Talia. "The new Soul?" Talia chuckled, in unbelief. "You probably read it somewhere in a book" She continued.

"No, no, I've heard it before, and not from you..but from somewhere," Her mom said looking at the floor, hoping to remember. After a while of silence, her mom finally spoke up again "In a dream.." She said looking up at Talia. "That's where I've heard it!" She called out smiling. Talia was about to ask what the dream was about, but she was interrupted when in the corner of her eye she saw someone jump behind the sheet-covered couch in the living room.

Just like in her dream...

"Mom," Talia quietly whispered to her mom. Her mom mouthed the words "what?" Talia pointed to the living room. "Follow me" She mouthed then put her pointer finger to her mouth indicating she needed to be quiet. Talia slowly walked past her mom and towards the living room, her mom quietly followed a short distance behind her.

This time Talia didn't hesitate at the entrance of the room, she just continued on her slow and cautious pace. But the closer she got to the couch, the more her heart started to race. Talia sighed realizing it had all been a dream, and this time she had her mom with her. She finally got close enough to the couch that her knees were touching the corner of it. She looked back at her mom and mouthed "Wait."

They stood there in silence, waiting. Suddenly Talia spotted the corner of the white sheet getting tugged. And just like in her dream, the sheets were abruptly yanked off of the couch and on the floor behind it. This time Talia didn't move, when she looked back she saw her mom staring wide-eyed, and she had stepped a few feet back. Talia decided to take this moment to look behind the couch, but when she leaned over the couch to look she saw once again no one was there.

"What the heck did I just see?" Her mom spat out. "The Soul, or the new Soul," Talia said sitting down on the now sheetless couch. "Someone does live here, don't they?" Her mom asked taking a peek behind the couch. "No one's lived here for about five years, that's what the landlord said," Talia said resting her head against the couch. "I think you should tell me what's going on," Her mom said sitting down next to her.

Talia told about the awakenings of the Soul weeping, and the new Soul who was young and always crying. She told her about the night that the Soul didn't go to sleep, and instead paced around the apartment. She told her about how the apartment was outrageously cheap because no one would buy it. And lastly, she told her about the dream she had on the bus.

Her mom sat in silence trying to process all of the information. "Sweetheart, there's something I need to tell you" she finally said speaking up. "When I was about fifteen years old I met your father, now, of course, we weren't dating back then. But we were best friends, and we did everything together," Talia nodded in understanding and rested further into the couch. Her mom continued,

"Just like you, I loved mystery books and watching Ghost hauntings and scary movies. Your father did too, well anyways one day his great-grandma was really sick. So his family, and I went to go visit her. By the time we got there she was already dead, but it wasn't like any death she wasn't dead in her bed, or on a couch. She was bleeding, all over on the floor. Her skin was peeled over on certain places of her body, it was the most disgusting thing I had ever seen,"

Talia suddenly became very uncomfortable, so she sat up. Her mom continued, "The ambulance and police came and took her away, I remember as I was walking out of the apartment in the corner of my eye I saw someone, or something run across from the kitchen to the living room. Days went by and I finally found out that his great-grandma had been murdered, and they weren't sure by who. In fact, to this day, they still don't know who did it, or more importantly what did it.

The reason I've heard the name 'Soul' is that one day when we were at the morgue, there to see her body one last time. I decided to step closer to her, I was young and curious. When I got close enough to breathe on her, I heard her say "The Soul will kill." I remember jumping back in fright, I saw her lips move and say the exact words. When I told your father, and his parents they told me I was just in shock. Of course, they didn't believe me, no one did, but I knew what I saw.

And Talia, one last thing, I know this apartment that we are in, I've been here before. This is the apartment his great-grandma used to live in, at first I didn't recognize it, I mean I had been here once. And I was young and scared. But this is it, and that's where we found her dead body." She said pointing to spot next to the sheet-covered piano in the living room.